Port of Miami Cruise Parking.

[The sea calls my name]

HELP. My DH and I have never driven to the Port of Miami. We always flew in. We are driving this year ( December 15, 2019 sailing)  and I am very frustrated. I have spent the last hour literally reading reviews and researching parking for the Port of Miami.  It currently is $22/day, which I find very steep, but have read some scary things about off-site parking.  We will not be spending the night before sailing since we only have a 4.5 hour drive in.  I tried to find the website to book a spot at the port and can't even find that. I know it is way early, but after today's frustartion I am glad I started looking.  Your help and experiences will be greatly appreciated.    

[Ourusualbeach]

17 minutes ago, The sea calls my name said:

HELP. My DH and I have never driven to the Port of Miami. We always flew in. We are driving this year ( December 15, 2019 sailing)  and I am very frustrated. I have spent the last hour literally reading reviews and researching parking for the Port of Miami.  It currently is $22/day, which I find very steep, but have read some scary things about off-site parking.  We will not be spending the night before sailing since we only have a 4.5 hour drive in.  I tried to find the website to book a spot at the port and can't even find that. I know it is way early, but after today's frustartion I am glad I started looking.  Your help and experiences will be greatly appreciated.    

You can’t book it in advance.

 

We parked  there at a Christmas.  Great set up.  Worth the extra few dollars for the convenience and safety.

 

Just  drive right up the ramp into the garage.  There are porters at the elevators who you can leave your luggage with.  Saves the hassle of circling done below dropping off luggage 

Edited January 19, 2019 by Ourusualbeach

[lr657]

8 minutes ago, The sea calls my name said:

HELP. My DH and I have never driven to the Port of Miami. We always flew in. We are driving this year ( December 15, 2019 sailing)  and I am very frustrated. I have spent the last hour literally reading reviews and researching parking for the Port of Miami.  It currently is $22/day, which I find very steep, but have read some scary things about off-site parking.  We will not be spending the night before sailing since we only have a 4.5 hour drive in.  I tried to find the website to book a spot at the port and can't even find that. I know it is way early, but after today's frustartion I am glad I started looking.  Your help and experiences will be greatly appreciated.    

 

We have a 4-5 hour drive to the POM also. When we cruise out of Miami for a cruise longer than 7 days, we do drive the day prior to the cruise and book a hotel in Fort Lauderdale/Dania that provides free parking for the cruise. We then use Jiffy Jeff, SAS, or Uber for transportation to and from the port. We have cruised out of Port Everglades and Port of Miami numerous times and have never had a problem leaving our vehicle at a hotel in FLL/Dania.  It seems to cost us less than paying $22/day for port parking, and saves us from that long drive the morning of the cruise.

[iahawkfan21]

Unfortunately unless you’re coming in the night before, parking at the port is your best option.  Sailing from Miami is a lot different than even Port Everglades when it comes to parking. 

[JohninDC]

Have you priced out 2 One way car rentals and avoiding all of the parking fees?  National, Alamo, Thrifty and Enterprise offer shuttles between their MIA airport location and POM.  Avis, Hertz and others have downtown locations that are close to the port.

 

check the FLORIDA departures board for more suggestions.

[tallnthensome]

Lots of info as mentioned in the Florida Departures forum. This parking question is asked all the time. This is the Royal Caribbean cruise forum.

[springfire]

 Miami Crowne Plaza has great rates, we use them all the time.  Have a 9 day cruise the first week in Feb and we are paying $63 total for 9 days of parking at the hotel, we did have a $5 off coupon.  You have to reserve ahead of time, small deposit required.  You do not have to stay at the hotel to park.   It is a gated secure fenced area with a guard.  Look up  reviews, they are excellent.  They do not have a shuttle, we uber and it is $18 each way, $26 if you take a taxi.  It works well for us because we take longer cruises.  We won't pay those crazy rates at the port.

Edited January 20, 2019 by springfire

[Trainer]

I just parked at Port of Miami in December for the Symphony.  Very easy to park and you do not need to reserve in advance.  I also drive in about four hours from west coast of Florida.  The reports of off-site parking in Miami are pretty awful so I don't take any chances as I have a new car.  The hotel parking is better but since I drive over in the morning I choose not to deal with the hotels.

  The price is worth the convenience both in and out and the service in the parking lots is excellent. 

Enjoy your cruise and relax about port parking.  No worries!

[tinkr2]

We also drive 4 hours from Orlando. We always drive down the day before , get a hotel that includes parking and take their shuttle or uber to the port. usually cheaper or the same and much more relaxing. It gives you an awesome day one instead of stress of driving and boarding exhausted.

[Oneluckywoman]

We have used global airport parking many times. It's less than half the price of port parking and they have a free shuttle both ways. If you get there early you are likely to get a covered parking place in their parking garage. It's located about a mile or 2 from the port in downtown miami. We have never had an issue with our car there, it seems more secure since it's in a garage. The only down side is waiting for the return shuttle on debarkation day. Too many people and not enough shuttles. But if you don't mind waiting you can save some money. Parking at the port is so much easier...hence the price. Good luck!

[deliver42]

We are a 4 hour drive to Miami, but still go down the day before. We stay at the Hilton Airport, which offers a shuttle to the port on their website. When we got there the first time, a return was also included. The price of the hotel as about what the parking at the port would be, but we stay at a hotel anyway, so there was a good savings.

[papaflamingo]

15 hours ago, Ourusualbeach said:

You can’t book it in advance.

 

We parked  there at a Christmas.  Great set up.  Worth the extra few dollars for the convenience and safety.

 

Just  drive right up the ramp into the garage.  There are porters at the elevators who you can leave your luggage with.  Saves the hassle of circling done below dropping off luggage 

We are going in March out of Miami.  Just to clarify, we can go straight to parking and there will be porters to take our luggage?  Also are the signs to parking easy to follow?  

Thanks

[Ourusualbeach]

2 minutes ago, papaflamingo said:

We are going in March out of Miami.  Just to clarify, we can go straight to parking and there will be porters to take our luggage?  Also are the signs to parking easy to follow?  

Thanks

As you are approaching the terminal you will see the rap going up into the garage.  You can’t miss it.

 

We made the mistake of circling below to drop off our luggage with everyone else either getting dropped off or picked up (10:30am). 

 

Had we we just gone straight up the ramp into the parking garage we would have been able to leave our luggage with the porters who were stationed by the elevator.

 

it was very easy.

[papaflamingo]

Just now, Ourusualbeach said:

As you are approaching the terminal you will see the rap going up into the garage.  You can’t miss it.

 

We made the mistake of circling below to drop off our luggage with everyone else either getting dropped off or picked up (10:30am). 

 

Had we we just gone straight up the ramp into the parking garage we would have been able to leave our luggage with the porters who were stationed by the elevator.

 

it was very easy.

Excellent!  Thank you so much.  I would have circled below too.  Greatly appreciate the info!  

[Ourusualbeach]

12 minutes ago, papaflamingo said:

Excellent!  Thank you so much.  I would have circled below too.  Greatly appreciate the info!  

You’re welcome.  Lots of porters were available after the cruise.  Took our luggage right to the car.

 

We’ll be doing the same thing again in March for Symphony.

[ZoeyVictoria]

We have a 5 hour drive and always spend the night before in a hotel in the Fort Lauderdale area.  For the Symphony in March, we will stay close to FLL and park in the Park ‘N Fly lot (there was an Amex offer that made this more attractive).  Then we will take Jiffy Jeff transportation to the port.  I hate the drive from Fort Lauderdale to Miami, and will enjoy skipping that plus being dropped off at the terminal.

[The sea calls my name]

1 hour ago, Ourusualbeach said:

As you are approaching the terminal you will see the rap going up into the garage.  You can’t miss it.

 

We made the mistake of circling below to drop off our luggage with everyone else either getting dropped off or picked up (10:30am). 

 

Had we we just gone straight up the ramp into the parking garage we would have been able to leave our luggage with the porters who were stationed by the elevator.

 

it was very easy.

Is there a single parking garage for the entire port or is this for the new RCCL terminal? I am just curious if it for entire port, where it is located and if vans are there to take you to your correct terminal. We will be sailing on the OTS.  Again thanks for the help.

[Clarea]

7 minutes ago, The sea calls my name said:

 ... We will be sailing on the OTS.   ...

 

Which ship is that?

[Ourusualbeach]

9 minutes ago, The sea calls my name said:

Is there a single parking garage for the entire port or is this for the new RCCL terminal? I am just curious if it for entire port, where it is located and if vans are there to take you to your correct terminal. We will be sailing on the OTS.  Again thanks for the help.

Terminal A has its own dedicated garage.

 

assuming you meant Oasis.

Edited January 20, 2019 by Ourusualbeach

[The sea calls my name]

Yes, Oasis of the Seas

[cruisinghawg]

Which hotel allows cruise parking in FL for the week? And what are the cost?

[deliver42]

Hilton Airport. Price varies by season.

[JohninDC]

1 hour ago, cruisinghawg said:

Which hotel allows cruise parking in FL for the week? And what are the cost?

www.parksleepfly.com and www.stay123.com are two sources to check for hotels offering cruise parking deals.  Most of the Miami locals on this board suggest only parking at the port for security and convenience reasons.  It is your car, do you feel lucky? 

[SteerageJoe]

2 hours ago, The sea calls my name said:

Yes, Oasis of the Seas

 

Here is a video showing the drive and directions to the Terminal A Parking Garage!

 

 

[The sea calls my name]

Thanks for the video. We have decided port parking is the route to go. I appreciate all the info given. These boards really can be a great source of informative information even with the occasional snide remark thrown in for good measure.